A number of companies that recruit veterans also have internal veterans' programs. For example, Booz Allen Hamilton has such a program, as they value the knowledge, experience, and credentials of veterans. They have created a program so veterans are introduced to the "corporate culture" and the non-military employees are introduced to the "military culture", joining the workforce and creating a mutual understanding and respect.

DoD Contractors

Government / Department of Defense contractors value and recruit veterans, as oftentimes, the work you performed in the military is directly aligned with the work accomplished by the contractor. You may even be able to step into the equivalent job, in the same location, you held in the military. Additionally, many DoD contractors require their employees to hold security clearances. If you have a security clearance when you leave the military, you may want to leverage that credential, and apply for jobs with DoD contractors. If you already have a security clearance, then you are highly desired by many DoD contractors, and your hiring process may even be expedited.

Government Executive updates the list of the Top 200 Federal Contractors (opens a new window) annually. Here are the Top 20 from the 2009 list:

1. Lockheed Martin Corp.
   
2. Northrop Grumman Corp.
   
3. Boeing Co.
   
4. BAE Systems
   
5. General Dynamics Corp.
   
6. Raytheon Co.
   
7. United Technologies Corp.
   
8. L-3 Communications Holdings
   
9. KBR Inc.
   
10. Navistar International Corp.
    
11. ITT Corp.
12. Textron Inc.
    
13. SAIC
    
14. General Electric Co.
    
15. Computer Sciences Corp.
    
16. Carlyle Group
17. Humana Inc.
    
18. URS Corp.
    
19. Health Net Inc.
    
20. Triwest Healthcare Alliance Co.

Other organizations / companies / industries that recruit military include:

• Security & Law Enforcement Organizations:
  The military defends the homeland against threats from foreign entities. Consequently, as a service member, you are trained in security, anti-terrorism, and force protection, at a minimum. Your skills and knowledge of security may be a benefit to an employer seeking an expert in security operations and or law enforcement.
  
  Job-Hunt's list of Veterans' Resources by State includes links to most state police organization recruiting pages, another law enforcement option.
  
  However, you do not necessarily have to "walk the beat." Your skills may translate to managing a security operation for any type of company; creating security plans; developing contingency security plans for a company, or other organization.
  
  
• The Federal Government:
  The US federal government offers veterans' preference points to service members who were awarded a campaign badge or expeditionary medal (5 points); or were disabled (10 points). Many federal positions align with military occupational specialties, and seeking federal employment can make for a smooth transition from the military.
  
  
• Intelligence & Intelligence Training Organizations:
  These types of organizations seek and recruit military, as you are already well trained with hands-on experience in intelligence disciplines. Intelligencecareers.com is an excellent website to use as a job search resource and includes a search function for cleared and non-cleared jobs in Intelligence, IT and Systems, Engineering, Linguistics, Management and Science, and Technical disciplines.
  
  
• Communications, utilities, and communications-oriented companies:
  Communications and utilities companies recruit veterans to leverage the skills gained in the military specific to communications and utilities. Some communications and utilities military-friendly companies from Top 100 lists include T-Mobile, Sprint-Nextel, Southern California Edison, AT&T, Pacific Gas and Electric, Constellation Energy, First Energy, Xcel Energy, and Dominion.
  
  
• Companies seeking military experience and discipline:
  VetJobs.com, GIJobs.com (which publishes an annual list of the top 100 Military Friendly Employers), and other veteran-specific job boards and information sites provide comprehensive lists of military-friendly companies (ranging from transportation, finance, health care, technology, government, retail, security, defense, consumer goods, logistics, insurance, industrial products and services, business services, and more). Here is a short list of Top Military-friendly companies:
  • Deloitte
    
  • Union Pacific Railroad
    
  • Home Depot
    
  • J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc.
    
  • TriWest Healthcare Alliance
    
  • Northrop Grumman Corporation
    
  • Sodexo, Inc.
    
  • Schneider National
    
  • Sears Holdings Corporation
    
  • Bank of America
    
  • State Farm Insurance Exelon Corporation Financial Services
    
  • DynCorp International
    
  • Corrections Corporation of America
    
  • U-Haul
    
  • Brink’s U.S.
    
  • American Eurocopter

Leadership & Management

Your military occupational specialty may be very specific, i.e., accountant, engineer, veterinarian, weapons specialist, chemical/biological/nuclear specialist, pilot, or logistics manager. However, you may also have gained many skills sets complimentary to leadership and management roles within varied military-friendly companies. For example, a submariner (Navy) secured a position with Coca-Cola as a Bottling Plant Manager; a comptroller (Army) accepted a position with Frito Lay as Director, Accounting Division; and an infantry soldier accepted a position as an Operations Manager/Warehousing with Wal-Mart. Your leadership skills, discipline, and solid work ethic are very desired by many companies, DoD contractors, and the federal government.

Battle Tested: From Soldier to Business Leader, cover story for the March 29, 2010, issue of FORTUNE magazine highlighted the growing recognition in corporate America of the value of military-trained, and battle-tested, leaders.

Teaching Careers

The DoD's Troops to Teachers provides counseling and referral services to military personnel interested in beginning a second career in public education as a teacher. The DANTES Troops to Teachers office will help applicants identify teacher certification requirements, programs leading to certification, and employment opportunities.

Locating Other Military-Friendly Employers

To identify military-friendly employers, start with general Google searches, job board searches, and military association searches.

Keyword Searches

To aid in locating companies who hire veterans, you can conduct keyword searches using any combination of these suggestions:

Department of Defense Contractors / DoD
Cleared Jobs
Security
Law Enforcement
Intelligence
Anti-terrorism
Homeland Security
Communications

Any keywords specific to your occupational specialty (engineering, health care, human resources / human capital, operations management, etc.)

Bottom Line

There is a growing appreciation in the civilian world of the value of military-trained employees and executives. The employers and resources listed above are just a starting point.